"We did locate the remains of a human. ... We are assuming that it is her at this time," New Haven assistant police chief Peter Reichard told reporters in a brief press conference. Police are treating the case as a homicide, Reichard said.

The body was found shortly after 5 p.m. in the wall of the Yale Amistad Street research laboratory where Le was last seen Tuesday, police said. On video surveillance, Le was seen entering the lab, but not leaving.

The find could end a massive search by state and federal authorities that expanded today to a Connecticut waste-processeing facility in addition to the Yale lab in the hopes of finding clues to her mysterious disappearance.

Using cadaver-sniffing dogs in round-the-clock shifts, FBI agents and state troopers dressed in hazardous-material suits began searching the facility in Hartford late Saturday night.

Play

null

Yale president Richard Levin announced the discovery in a letter to the university's staff and students tonight.

"It is my tragic duty to report that the body of a female was found in the basement of the Amistad Building late this afternoon. The identity of the woman has not yet been established," Levin's letter said. "Law enforcement officials remain on the scene; this is an active investigation, and we hope it is resolved quickly."

Le and fiance Jonathan Widawsky were to be married today at a ceremony on Long Island, N.Y. Wedding gifts were left outside Widawky's family's home.

Earlier today, investigators said they were examining items recovered from inside the lab building, but did not confirm published reports that those items included bloody clothing, reportedly found inside the ceiling of the lab.

Play

null

The mystery of Le's disappearance intensified Saturday when FBI agents said that surveillance video showed Le entering the Amistad Building on Yale's campus, but despite there being more than 70 cameras in and around the building, there was no video of her ever leaving.

Le was due to marry Jonathan Widawsky today, which had originally led to questions about whether the 24-year-old pharmacology student had gotten cold feet and ran away, or whether she was the victim of foul play.

In an exclusive interview with "Good Morning America" Saturday, a friend of Le's who came to New York to attend the wedding said the bride-to-be was excited about getting married and would not have run away to avoid the wedding.

"Everything was good. There was nothing that would make us believe that she was having second thoughts or anything like that," said Vanessa Flores, a close friend and former roommate of Le's.

"She's a very conscientious person. This thing has been planned for more than a year, and she was just very excited about it," Flores said.

The Long Island wedding was canceled just as more than 100 local, state and federal law enforcement officials descended on the university, pouring over video footage from some 75 cameras near where Le was last seen.

Police scanned blueprints of the lab and brought in blood sniffing dogs, paying particular attention to the building's basement.

Yale has also offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to Le's whereabouts.

A Prescient Article Written by Le

Adding to the intrigue surrounding the case is a magazine article Le wrote for a campus magazine earlier this year about how to stay safe on the Ivy League campus.

The article, titled "Crime and Safety in New Haven," was published in February in a magazine produced by Yale's medical school and compares higher instances of robbery in New Haven to other cities with Ivy League universities.

"In short, New Haven is a city and all cities have their perils," Le wrote. "But with little street smarts, one can avoid becoming yet another statistic."

Le, who is 4-foot-11 and 90 pounds, was least seen entering the laboratory around 10 a.m. Tuesday.

Her purse, cell phone and other belongings were left in the lab.

"She left her pocketbook, her cell phone, everything in the lab," Le's co-worker Debbie Apuzzo said.

Le's Facebook page shows the 24-year-old student posing in wedding dresses and smiling with fiance Widawsky, a Columbia University graduate student in physics whom she described as her best friend.

"He's an amazing kid, just a wonderful, wonderful boy, and he must be heartbroken," said Widawsky's friend Linda Matychack. "I just can't imagine."

Le's face is plastered on missing persons posters and an electronic billboard along Connecticut's Interstate 91.